Ask Pastor John

Because Christ justifies believers, not their own law-keeping, do Christians still need to keep the commandments?

Christ should radiate in and through every rap song, but the gospel need not be explicitly presented every time. Pastor John describes Christ-exalting rap.

Pastor John describes marks of a healthy church and the combination of factors that may suggest it’s time to leave.

By his blood, Jesus purchased a unified bride in which the saints lay their souls bare and pray for one another.

How should Christians care for their bodies, which the Bible calls temples of God, without idolizing them or investing too much in outer beauty?

We can know Scripture, and we can know the Scripture. Take the time to read and analyze, but leave plenty of time to experience it as well.

How should believers pursue affections for Jesus in a broken world where those affections seem to rise and fall constantly?

Christ has fulfilled the Old Testament law for his people. But does that mean God no longer expects us to tithe?

Ninety percent of our daily decisions have no guiding list. But a mind renewed by God through his word and Spirit can know the delightful taste of God’s will.

The mark of Jesus's sheep is that they hear and believe the saving word of the gospel preached to them.

Pastor John gives a taste of the upcoming Desiring God National Conference, centered around C.S. Lewis.

Pastor John unpacks the story of the rich man and Lazarus to show the great chasm fixed between believers and unbelievers after death.

The Lord can and will show mercy to sinners who repent in the eleventh hour. Yet, spiritual corpses who love their sin cannot raise themselves from the dead.

Believers walk day by day as servants of others because their Savior is alive, their Father is King, the Spirit is present, and their reward is coming.

There are rich biblical grounds for saying, "Yes, believers do need role models in Christ." God has given us one another to imitate.

Marriage — and dating on that trajectory — cannot be the beautiful union God designed it to be if he himself is not in the picture.

There is a time for everything. When confronted by our sin, sorrow is the appropriate reaction — the one that can lead to true repentance.

If you want to motivate your church, don’t start with programs and activities. Start with a vision of God’s glory.

Bitterness flows from a heart that feels the pain of injustice. Forgiveness flows from a heart overcome by trust in God’s justice.

Marriage only lasts a lifetime. The relationships Christians build with one another last for eternity.

Psalm 73 declares that God’s people desire nothing on earth besides God. Why then was it “not good” that Adam was alone with God?

If you feel any measure of fear of judgment, or horror for your sin, turn to Jesus and repent — it’s not too late.

God still speaks today through his living, active word. All other revelation must be tested against Scripture (and hopefully alongside wise believers).

Christians are like farmers who, in reading God’s word, tend their gardens day by day, even when the fruit is not yet visible.

Marriage is a lifelong, God-wrought covenant. God did not create it to break — even when one partner goes back on their vows by viewing pornography.

Pastor John explains how complaining not only diminishes the light of God’s power and goodness, but also the light of his reward for his children.

Complaining snuffs out the light that believers hold — the light of God’s goodness, his power, and his wisdom in the midst of a dark world.

Some psalms relate to specific events in the life of David or Israel, so how should Christians take the promises in those psalms?

Pastor John identifies some of the reasons why evangelicals go to the Catholic Church, along with some of the issues with Catholic teaching.

Pastor John discusses the similarities and differences between the Holocaust and abortion, ending with this certainty: God will settle every account.

Gossip springs up from a proud and negative heart that hides beneath a veneer of concern and love.

Pastor John shares the story of his testimony. He can’t remember it, yet it is still amazing.

The word “legalism” is not found in the Bible. So what do people mean when they contrast legalism with the gospel?

God equips women to minister mightily in this world. Pastor John clarifies 1 Timothy 2 and calls women to endless possibilities.

Pastor John examines how God can both remember and forget sins according to what will work the most for our good.

It is difficult, even strange, to turn workplace conversations from football and fashion to the gospel. How then should believers approach evangelism at work?

Sin defaces the image of God, but it doesn’t destroy it. Pastor John explains what it means to be made in the image of God in this age of redemption.

The jealousy of God is both righteous and loving; often, our jealousy is sinful and selfish. How can Christians distinguish these jealousies?

Envy rises up out of a resentful, discontent hearts. Therefore, trust in God’s goodness is the believer’s secret weapon in the battle against envy.

The Holy Spirit testifies that believers are God’s children by working good fruit in their lives and a cry in their hearts: “Father! Lord!”

Behind sexual scenes in entertainment swirls a sea of lust, adultery, and hate — sexual sin that killed Jesus, and that Jesus died to kill.

The four steps of biblical discipline are designed to keep the church holy and pure while it loves the unrepentant back to Jesus.

Pastor John defines selfishness and discusses the holy pursuit for joy in prayers.

Pastor John talks about God’s plan to take his glory to the nations, the spreading of his name.

Self-satisfied hearts that don’t see their desperate need for the all-satisfying Christ are the seedbed for lukewarm Christianity.

Many of us marry with little idea of the gifts and hardships ahead. So what would Pastor John tell his newly married self?

Work, play, and sleep like a Calvinist — outproduce, outplay, and outdream everyone by trusting in your sovereign God.

Pastor John shares eight practical counsels to avoid ministry burnout, starting with, “Love what you do.”

When a lie would win approval and favor from others, a Christian’s truth-telling hinges on contentment in the approval and favor of God.

If we don’t understand that God finds us hateful and loathsome in our sin, we won’t be as stunned by the depth of his love for us.